It had only been eight days since the Carolina Hurricanes took on and beat the Maple Leafs in Canada when the Canes came out victorious again over Toronto in Raleigh. With early goals and solid goaltending from netminder Frederik Andersen, the Hurricanes secured a 2-1 win and two crucial points in the standings.
Carolina (45-20-7) has now won six of its last seven games, including a 5-4 shootout win against Toronto (40-21-9) on March 16. The Canes secured a 3-0 series win over the Leafs and look to use this momentum heading into the final stretch of the season. It was a big milestone night for a few Carolina players, with defenseman Brady Skjei playing his 600th career NHL game and center Sebastian Aho being recognized for holding the title for third-most points in franchise history. Defenseman Brent Burns also tallied his 100th point on the Canes roster.
Andersen started in net for Carolina and turned out to be the hero of the game. Since coming back from blood clots on March 7, Andersen has been lights-out and performing at the top of his game. Making 32 saves, the netminder earned his sixth-straight win since returning to the lineup.
“It’s Freddy, you know,” Aho said. “I’ve seen him do this stuff over and over and over again. The whole team obviously trusts him a lot. You just kind of get a little nervous for him … after a long injury you hope to see him have a good start.”
The game started quickly and on a high note for the Hurricanes. Less than two minutes after puck drop, the buzzer lit up for the red-and-black, courtesy of a snapshot from Skjei. With a quick 1-0 lead it was all Canes for the rest of the first frame. Shooting 16 shots compared to Toronto’s seven, it was safe to say the boys were buzzing.
Toronto earned the first power play opportunity of the game after right wing Andrei Svechnikov was sent to the box on a boarding call. This didn’t hinder the Canes at all; with the second-best penalty kill in the NHL, Carolina quickly passed the two minutes with a man down and no Maple Leaf goals. The Canes got a power play of their own soon after, including a penalty shot taken by center Jake Guentzel, but couldn’t get on the board during that time.
A common theme throughout the night was Carolina’s lack of ability when it came to following through with shots. There were instances where players from the Canes would be less than 10 feet from Toronto goalie Joseph Woll but didn’t make final connections to score.
“Well it was a good start obviously,” said head coach Rod Brind’Amour. “Really it was a good game until they got that one…overall it was a great effort for sure. We had tons of opportunities, and they had theirs. For a low-scoring game, there were quite a few opportunities.”
Carolina eventually scored on the power play during the first frame. Passing the puck around on the man advantage, Guentzel fed the rubber to Aho who launched a shot towards the net. The puck then bounced off of Maple Leaf defenseman Jake McCabe and into the net.
No goals were scored in the second period but Toronto quickly caught up to the Hurricanes in shots on goal. The Leafs even got another power play from Svechnikov, his second penalty of the game, but the penalty kill did what it does best and kept the Canes in the lead.
“It’s never lack of effort with that guy,” Brind’Amour said. “I mean, he gives you everything he has, and we talked about [that] he’s gotta be smarter. It’s that simple; … he’s gotta figure it out.”
Andersen stood on his head in the second frame and throughout the third. Diving from one end of the crease to another, the ex-Maple Leaf put his best foot forward against his old team. It wasn’t until 10 minutes were left in the game that Toronto got on the scorecard, and only when Andersen was missing his stick. Left wing Nicholas Robertson tallied the only goal for the Leafs, which is surprising since Toronto superstar center Auston Matthews leads the NHL with 58 goals.
Missing passes still caused the Canes trouble through the last few minutes, leading to Toronto getting takeaways and chances on the net. Carolina made it through some nail-biting moments though and secured the 2-1 win and series sweep.
Carolina will travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Penguins on Tuesday, March 26, in what will be an emotional homecoming for Guentzel. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.
